CREDIT: SUCKER PUNCH STUDIOS
Infamous: Second Son’s protagonist Delsin Rowe, voiced by Troy Baker.

A problem is arising for the millions of gamers who were lucky enough to get their hands on the Xbox One or the PlayStation 4 during this past holiday season, and it's an issue that arises for the “early adopters” of any video game console: they have nothing to play.

While the release of a new generation of consoles marks the culmination of years of work by a vast team of hardware architects, those who are responsible for the games have much less time to prepare their products, causing a seemingly large delay between the early titles that launch alongside the system and those that will keep gamers entertained in the months to follow.

A second wave of new video games for the two newest consoles is due to kick off in the next few weeks, and will, with any luck, signify that the gap that gamers are experiencing will be coming to a close. These new releases will also serve a unique purpose within the video game industry, hopefully proving that the “next generation” is not simply a term for shinier graphics, but the advancement of the industry and of games as a medium for storytelling and interactivity.

Launch titles such as Killzone: Shadow Fall on the PS4 or Ryse: Son of Rome on the Xbox One, while more visually appealing than anything that has been seen before, were widely considered to be disappointments, primarily due to the fact that in gameplay terms, everything had been done before.

Following this slightly underwhelming launch, I've taken a look at two of the upcoming titles that are expected to truly mark the future of games.

Titanfall (Xbox One, Xbox 360, PC), March 11
Guns, jetpacks and giant robots, Respawn Entertainment has seemingly found a winning combination in their upcoming blockbuster. One of the most talked-about titles of last summer's Electronic Entertainment Expo, including a record-setting six “Best of Show” awards, Titanfall promises firstperson shooter fans an evolution in a genre that has become stagnant of late.

Coming from the minds behind the original (and best) Call of Duty titles, this always competitive future-based shooter puts players in control of a pilot in a war-torn setting as they struggle to find the resources that their society needs to persevere. What sets Titanfall apart, however, is the ability to control a Titan, a giant mechanical battle suit that can turn the tide in their team's favor, and the developers at Respawn Entertainment have promised that these machines will control as fluidly as the men that pilot them, allowing for a seamless play experience.

Infamous: Second Son (PS4), March 21
If you were granted powers beyond those of an ordinary human, would you use them to better your fellow man, or allow them to send you into a spiral of corruption? This age-old dilemma has always been the root of Sucker Punch Productions' Infamous series since its debut in 2009, allowing gamers to take control of the electrically charged Cole McGrath in an open city, controlling him on his journey to being a hero (or villain). Second Son moves across the country to Seattle, where gamers are put in the shoes of Delsin Rowe, a younger, a more brash character who is similarly bestowed with otherworldly powers and no direction until one is chosen for him by the player. Early reception to the game has been strong, with reviewers praising the story, the lifelike rendition of a ravaged Seattle, and the details in the animations as all massive improvements on what has been done before.